For the uninitiated, the most likely touchstone for The Cribs‘ sneering approach to guitar-centric, three minute rock ‘n roll songs will be the music of The Strokes. Although the former hail from the other side of the Atlantic, the two groups share the same penchants for slovenly fashionability and taut songwriting, not to mention the confidently slurred brio of those who are much hipper than you will ever be. Where The Strokes cultivated their cool factor through stylists and photo sessions, The Cribs have required nothing more than their music to convey their swagger over the course of two previous full lengths.

Of course, The Cribs are more than The Strokes sans hair and makeup crew and arena level popularity. For one, they’ve always been more self-aware and self-deprecating than many of their counterparts, particularly UK colleagues like Razorlight and the Futureheads. This sense of humor is on display on their new third release, Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever, on songs like “I’m A Realist.” On it, Ryan Jarman proclaims “I’m a realist! I’m a romantic!” before deciding the truth is “I’m indecisive and that’s about it.”

Struggling to find one’s true identity is a subtle but persistent theme throughout, most notably on the two songs referred to in the album’s title. “Men’s Needs” finds the narrator struggling to reconcile his own personal beliefs with those expected of men in society, while “Women’s Needs” continues the theme with its apathetic refrain of “women’s needs–whatever.”

It may be Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus from a trio unlikely to ever browse the self-help stacks, and it isn’t anything that hasn’t been said more eloquently before, but it’s a good counterpoint to The Cribs’ brash musical presence. The apotheosis of the album’s central concern actually comes in the form of a music video for “Men’s Needs” that has been released in three different versions which all play on the concepts of gender roles, submissiveness, and empowerment. In all three, The Cribs perform the song against a green screen backdrop while a young woman circles the three bandmembers. In the first and most widely available version, the woman is nude but has her naughty bits censored out with the traditional thick black boxes. Version two eschews the nudity in favor of a tan colored swimsuit which is suggestive but entirely decent. The final version, and the one which has understandably received the most publicity, is a wholly uncenored version with full nudity. I’m still trying to reach my own conclusions about ploy–on the one hand, it’s facile, a very literal reading of the song’s meaning, but on the other hand it is bold and spot-on in many respects.

Regardless of how one might feel about the video, the song is an impressive single by a band who will be remembered for impressive singles. As with its predecessors, Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever is ultimately an album by a band that composes excellent songs not flawless LPs; the music is thoroughly enjoyable but wholly unremarkable save for those shining moments when you feel compelled to listen to a song repeatedly. True, there are cuts here that reach out more broadly than anything the band has previously released. However, these are also the most easily dismissed tracks like “Be Safe” with its hard-edged spoken word or the passable twang of the closing track, “Shoot the Poets.”

The Cribs know enough to keep experimentation to a minimum and concentrate instead on what they do best–crafting direct, ardent songs like “My Life Flashed Before My Eyes” and the supercharged “Our Bovine Public.” Where the band has grown most appreciably is in incorporating more sophisticated blushes into their standard fare, stacking vocal arrangements, becoming more thoughtful about how instrumental components interlock, and even pulling off some more complicated harmonies reminiscent of countrymen Menswe@r’s mid ’90s releases. Men’s Needs lives up to the task of being easy to enjoy, energetic, and crankable. In that sense, it’s a perfect accompaniment to summer nights out and will help The Cribs continue to establish an appreciative Stateside audience.

To download a free, electro-dipped remix of The Cribs’ “Men’s Needs” by Brazil’s Cansei de Ser Sexy (CSS), click here.

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